A few things not to say when meeting a romance author!

By Alyssa J. Montgomery

I’m sure many if not most romance authors have experienced this conversation. It could be at a black-tie cocktail party or a backyard BBQ. Someone mentions there’s a romance author present and the reactions vary from, “Really? I love romance novels” to the words, “You write romance?” (the latter accompanied by a snicker of disbelief, a discreet cough and a little titter from someone else). The conversation switches swiftly to romance novels and the same timeless myths are trotted out by males and females alike. 

                               

Anne Gracie wrote an article for the Victorian Writers’ Centre magazine WriteOn about some “Myths of Romance”. The ones she mentioned – “formulaic writing”, “they’re all the same”; “soft porn for women” “cardboard characters, clichés and bad writing” as well as having “absolutely no value to the world”, are still being bandied about by ignorant, and (I think) arrogant individuals. 

Back to the conversation...Barbara Cartland is mentioned and I immediately point out that Dame Barbara sold over a billion books worldwide in at least 36 languages. Then, having written an article on this Breathless in the Bush blog about how romance novels empower women, I launch into my defence of romance novels, all the while wondering how my wonderful hosts can be entertaining people who are so downright rude! 

The conversation takes a personal turn when an acquaintance expresses surprise that I write “those books” because “you’re an educated woman”. I barely contain my eye-roll back at the man. When I ask what sort of person he thinks writes a romance novel, he has the grace to look slightly embarrassed, but then volunteers: “Someone who’s desperately unhappy and can’t find their own romance”. The floodgates open. One negative comment flows after another from ‘sex-obsessed’ (with a wink and a nudge to my husband) to “a middle-aged, unemployed cat lady”. 

Well, thank you very much!

Of course, these people are simply displaying their ignorance and appalling manners. None of their comments are original, but for the record, here are some things NOT to say if you ever meet a romance author.

“How long does it take to write one of those books? A couple of days or a week or so?”

“Are your books like 50 Shades of Grey?”

“Did your publisher give you a formula?”

“Did you have a crush on Fabio when you were growing up?”

“I downloaded your book from a free site, then I shared it to another free site because I enjoyed it so much!”

“Do you have to write a certain number of pages of sex scenes in each book?”

“Do you research the sex scenes with your husband?”

 “Where can I get a free copy?”

Please don’t use the words smut, porn/mummy porn, trash, or bodice ripper and please don’t do what ‘fans’ of Julia Quinn did to her and launch into a long-winded review of why you didn’t like the book and what the author should’ve done differently!

Thankfully the ill-mannered individuals are far outnumbered by respectful people.

Love to love awesome, empowering romance novels.

Love to laugh at the stereotypical images of the romance writer!

Love to learn what experiences others have had in regard to ridiculous comments people have made about romance writers/the romance genre, so please leave a comment below.

A Royal Love Affair

Not sure about anyone else but for any royal wedding I'm pretty much like this in front of the tv screen:

Image credit: giphy.com

Which is also what I look like watching any sort of hallmark royal romance movie, or reading royal romance novels. What can I say, I LOVE royal romance.

When I first had the idea for this blog, the big news around the world was Harry and Meghan doing a split from the crown (sad face). Now, of course, Covid19 has swept us away into a life of isolation and uncertainty (bigger sad face).

Today however, I’m hoping to drag you all back into a world of tiaras, duty and romance.

Image credit: giphy.com

Put your hand up if you aren’t a fan of royal romance. No one? Well I’m not surprised (plus let’s face it, you probably wouldn’t be reading this if you didn’t have a thing for royal romance J)

I’m a total sucker for a good royal romance – it’s the ultimate escapism read for me and as I’m just finishing up the final book in a three book royal romance series, my head is chockablock full of diamonds, sweeping ballgowns, glitz, glamour, duty and of course forever love.

Image credit: giphy.com

So I thought, if I love it, surely others do too, and I approached a few of my all-time favourite authors who write compelling, romantic, sensual royal romances that never fail to sweep me away into their worlds, and asked them what they love MOST about writing royal romance.

Clare Connelly on writing royal romance:

“There's so much I love about reading - and writing - royal romance. There's the fairytale, of course! The idea of becoming a princess, of all the trappings, but the thing I adore most is humanising these people we know so little about. I like writing behind the trappings and showing that their problems, worries and sources of happiness are just the same as ours!”

Click to find out more about The Secret Kept from the King

Annie West on writing royal romance:

“You asked my favourite part of writing a royal romance. It’s hard to pin down precisely, but I think the stakes are higher when royalty is involved. All the world is watching and there is tremendous pressure on royal characters to get things right – so when they don’t and things go wrong in a big way (we can’t make it too easy for our characters!) then the consequences grow and so does the tension. I think there’s something about a life lived under the weight of public expectation that adds an extra layer to a royal romance. Plus I love the fact that I’m writing real people with real emotions and in the end it doesn’t matter what their official title is – they’re the same as the rest of us when it comes to grappling with both heartache and joy!”

Click to find out more about Revelations of a Secret Princess

Alyssa J Montgomery on writing royal romance:

“There’s a lot of intrigue about royalty - all the privileges and responsibilities being born or marrying into that status entails. The fascination is no doubt fuelled by the fact that we’re fed a plethora of princess/handsome prince stories as children.

I loved exploring the burdens of royalty for my characters Princess Sabrina and King Gabriel, and what it meant to grow up as the “spare” for Prince Devereaux and Prince Marco - and the pressures brought to bear on Prince Khalid for being the “spare” thrust into the role of inheriting the kingdom. I loved their conflicts and their growth and I’m really thrilled that Escape Publishing are releasing all four stories together as a boxed set in September.”

Click to find out more about The Defiant Princess

I've shared some of my favourite royal romance books, I’d like to now put it back to you: Do you love reading royal romance? And if so, let me know your favourite?

Psst, if you’re looking for a little inspiration I also stumbled across this Goodreads list which I thought I’d share – thank you AusRom for putting this one together!

https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/123623.Royal_Fever_Aussie_Style

Let’s bring on the happy ever after, royal style!

I love to love... reading and writing royal romance

I love to laugh... with my daughters whilst playing dress ups (princesses and weddings, of course)

I love to learn... how to paint with watercolours (one of my iso crafting projects)

Miranda's April Musings!

ARR2019 fun - my tribe! ❤❤❤

In case you're wondering what ARR2019 means, the translation is A Romantic Rendezvous 2019 with the Australian Romance Readers Association Inc. (ARRA). Over four absolutely blissful days in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane and Perth, ARRA gathered large roomfuls of absolutely fantastic (incredibly brave) authors, sat them at tables the authors decorated to the nines, complete with books, chocolates, samplers, pens and other sumptuous items, and - opened the doors to the public! 

Folks, this is my tribe. My people. My friends. And, I don't want to go too Lord of the Rings creepy about it, but the books are all my Precioussss…

The first thing I was handed at the Sydney registration was a bag of books, chocolates and little gifts, because I registered as a VIP visitor. Omigosh.

The second thing I was handed was another freebie - and what a funky cover - The Love Experiment by Ainslie Paton:

Photo credit: amazon.com

I mean to say, by this stage I was overwhelmed. A bag of swoony stuff and I'd hardly gotten inside the door. Woot!

The next fun bit happened over the next three hours. I hugged and kissed and chatted my way around the room. YES I DID. In the middle I had lunch with some other lovely reader friends including our dear reader friend Helen S, and the chat went on there, too. Lots of 'Have you read...?', 'Have you read?', 'Have you read?'... Heavens to betsy, my TBR tripled in a nanosecond. And I already had that luscious bag of new books at my feet.

There were so many authors at ARR2019 I can't name them all, but I got absolutely swept off my feet by their love and wonderful-ness. And I got still more books! I might have also gotten more chocolates but there's no evidence remaining *cough*. But, the bliss. Fellow bloggers Alyssa Montgomery (at a splendid table), Enisa Haines, Cassandra Samuels and Marilyn Forsyth were there, plus lots of familiar friends. All for the same purpose: to enjoy the vibe and romance at its best! 

I was very excited to meet Celeste Bradley, who had flown in from the US for the event. I trembled as she signed a copy of Wedded Bliss for me. We shared a little story about the US Deep South, so she wrote in her book: For Miranda, Keep travelling! It makes your life longer. ❤ Celeste Bradley. Ooh. 

Photo credit: amazon.com

I was also excited to meet new-to-me author Michelle Montebello.   Her new book The Quarantine Station is set in Manly, close to where I grew up. The book is now on my TBR and I can't wait! I visited and in fact stayed at the Quarantine Station not that long ago and did a tour (it's now a hotel). Michelle's inscription to me reads: To Miranda. Break all the rules. Fall in love. ❤ Michelle. x Yes please, thankyou very much!

photo credit: amazon.com

The marvellous thing about romance authors is their warmth and love. I'm not kidding. Everyone had a smile on their face, everyone was ready for a chat, everyone was just super amazing - and this included other readers I became instant BFFs with, just standing there chatting about our mutual love of this or that book/author/genre. Everyone shared the love around. The vibe was happy, relaxed and fantastic. 

THANKYOU ARRA! I had the best day!

Love to you all from a very happy Miranda xx

Love to love: 

Going to an ARRA event. It's all romance books, fans, authors, good stuff. And chocolate. Have you been to something like this?

Love to laugh:
  

At heart I'm still a swoony romance reader fan. Meeting authors gives me such a buzz! How about you?

Love to learn:

Are you like me - trembling at the knees when you get to meet someone you've read and loved?

How Easy is it to Add to Your 'To Be Read' Pile?

Miranda's May Musings

Hello beautiful readers, welcome! I have a very serious question to ask this month: how big is your To Be Read pile? Ha, stop laughing... Is it like mine? Enormous? Even if I live to be eleventy billion years old I'll never finish. Such a thrilling dilemma.

Today fellow BITB blogger Alyssa J Montgomery and I went to a wonderful High Tea run by the Australian Romance Readers Association (ARRA), and it was divine. Held in a beautiful boutique hotel in Sydney, there were three tables, each hosted by an author: Kandy Shepherd, Shannon Curtis, and my table's lovely hostess Avril Tremayne.

You know where this is going, don't you? Yes, more books! I don't care that I've got a trillion books at home (slight exaggeration only). I staggered home full of tea, scones, sandwiches and cake, with a bag of free books and divine swag (unicorn pen! tiara! chocolates!) from Avril. So now, deliciously, these books are on my TBR:

                   

Photo credits: amazon.com

Here Comes the Bridesmaid is a beautiful hardback (isn't the cover sumptuously bridesmaid-y pink? I adore it!), and of course both books are signed by Avril. Swoon. Thankyou, Avril, thankyou.

...But wait, there's more. Our recent guest blogger Melanie Milburne was also at my table (read her recent column here). Congratulations Melanie on your 75th book (wow!). These are now on my TBR:

                     

                      Photo credit: amazon.com

Photo credit: amazon.com

Somehow or other I missed getting a book from Kandy Shepherd. I love her sweet romances, they are gorgeous to read, and Kandy is the nicest person to meet and chat to. So I've pre-ordered her latest, which sounds right up my alley and has a divine wedding pic on the cover. I love it already.

Photo credit: amazon.com

I did get this book from Shannon Curtis, quite outside my normal genre picks, which will be interesting to read. Shannon suggested I read Lycan Unleashed first, to get the gist of the world building. Alrighty then.

Photo credit: amazon.com

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaand there was more: some books by Penny Reid in the Knitting in the City series. And so many others to choose from - I honestly couldn't carry them all home, such a tragedy. Everyone staggered out from that High Tea with happy tummies and books spilling out of their arms, adding to their TBRs with gay abandon. Alyssa's bag was just as heavy as mine.

It is so, so, SO easy to add to the TBR, isn't it? Life is sweet! ...I'm off to read.

Until next time, my friends,

Love from Miranda xxx

Love to Love:

Free books! High teas! Meeting new authors and old friends! Thankyou ARRA.

Love to Laugh:

...at how dead easy it is to add to one's mountainous TBR. Awesome.

Love to Learn:

Has something fabulously wonderful like this happened to you? Free signed books poured your way? Or are you disciplined (unlike moi) and finish your TBR before you add more? (But seriously, does such a person even exist?!) 

Habits and Rituals of the Resident Writer

By Cassandra Samuels

Greetings Dear Readers!

Today I delve into the habits and rituals of some of our favourite authors. We all have them, those little things we do to prepare to let the words flow. Some are simple, some are perhaps even a little odd, but if they help us get the words down who is to complain?

Victor Hugo, who wrote Les Miserables, liked to work in the nude. It meant he couldn't leave the house and had to stay home and write.

Truman Capote,  author of In Cold Blood, liked to write lying down with a coffee and a cigarette. I guess he had formulated a rhythm of sip, puff, and write.

For me, I have to listen to music. I have several playlists but, generally, it is Two Steps from Hell (strangely enough, not a punk rock band but a group that do soundtracks to movies and games).

Once I am writing, the music fades into the background like white noise and I can concentrate on what I am doing without being distracted by the sounds of the house around me (phones ringing, doors banging, conversations etc).

Here are what some fellow authors have said about their writing habits and/or rituals.

Alyssa J Montgomery

I don't think I've got any particularly interesting or remarkable writing rituals. I do like to have made any important phone calls/attended to anything important before I sit down to write, and I always sit down with a cup of tea. I generally read back over the chapter I've left off at to get me into the character voices again and to refresh my mind so I'm not repeating word choices. I look at my plot outline (I've adapted a colour system I learned from Cherry Adair when I attended her plotting by colour workshop in Dallas a couple of years ago). Once I have firmly in my mind where I am, I just write. Chocolate was definitely a welcome part of the ritual but since my last cholesterol reading was too high, that is now sadly lacking when I write!

Alli Sinclair

I never used to have a ritual when writing but a year ago I saw a Reiki Master and mentioned how I was feeling blocked on my story. She asked how I like to write - which is usually on the couch with my laptop - and she said to try writing at my desk with my feet placed firmly on the ground as it is supposed to help with the flow of creativity. I gave it a go and, lo and behold, the words came out fast and furious and the block I'd been suffering disappeared into the ether. I've been sitting with my feet firmly placed on the floor for a year now and my productivity has increased tenfold!
 

Narelle Atkins

I plug my headphones into my iPhone and listen to 80's music when I write. I mix up the playlists, depending on my mood.  

Cathleen Ross

I take the dog for a walk and then write until about 4 p.m. for six days a week. I aim for 1000 words a day unless I have to do research. Because the book I'm currently working on requires a lot of research, I do as much study at night. 

Amy Rose Bennett

I don’t need much to get me into a writing mood other than booting up my laptop and turning off social media. Fortunately, I can pretty much write anywhere, anytime; in fact, I actually don’t have a particular writing desk or space. The only ‘must-have’ I can think of is making sure I have a good cup of coffee at hand. Then I’m good-to-go.

Maggie Nash

I think my most successful method of preparing to write is not to prepare at all. Sometimes I am guilty of overthinking ..so I find I get a lot more done when I don't prepare and just make that decision to sit down and write, and get on with it.

Do you have any habits or rituals before writing?Please do tell!

I love to love: Watching Poldark Season 2

I love to laugh: At old guys dancing.

I love to learn: About the writing habits and rituals of other authors - hence this post!

Medievals vs Contemporaries: Writing Romance in Both Ages!

with guest blogger Alyssa James/Alyssa J. Montgomery

Thank you for having me on the Breathless in the Bush Blog!

I'm here as ALYSSA JAMES and ALYSSA J. MONTGOMERY. I write contemporary romance for Escape Publishing, but when I decided to pen Medieval romances I used different branding because the genres appeal to different audiences. The stories are vastly different, even though the goal is always to write a story which will engage and satisfy readers' emotions.

I aspired to write contemporary romance because I grew up reading them. My first Medieval romance evolved due to one imagined scene, which I knew wouldn't work in a contemporary romance. I was touring castles in Europe at the time, so the Medieval period appealed.

From that one scene, pivotal to the conflict between my hero and heroine, an exciting new world of writing opened up. Medieval life afforded few rights for women and the justice system hardly seemed just, enabling me to raise the stakes for my characters, force them into desperate situations, and test their morales in life and death scenarios. It's the stuff fairytales are made of. Enter the most heinous of villains, the strong heroine who must take action to save herself - and, of course, the even stronger hero who really does ride up on his charger to save the day!

The Medieval time frame lends itself to believable intrigue and plotting, murder and brutality that can engross the reader. In the second of my Medieval stories, the historical events of the time actually inspired the conflict and motivations of my characters.

I find historical research riveting. The challenge is making sure the historical details are right. I've struck gold because the lady who reviewed Knight of Her Heart for the UK Historical Novel Society enjoyed the story and offered to help with future research. She gave me a lovely review, but wrote privately and pointed our a few minor historical glitches, eg. King Henry V should have been referred to as Your Grace rather than Your Majesty. (That was corrected before the print version of the book was published!) When she read through Book 2 in the series, Knight of Her Dreams, she also found some errors: eg. the blade on the type of sword one of the characters wielded was too thick to fit between the joins of two pieces of armour. She recommended a different type of sword that would do the job. Problem fixed!

Because there's not a lot of research in my contemporary romances, I write them faster. I also don't have to worry about making the dialogue period friendly!

I currently have three contemporary romances in the works, and I fall asleep at night plotting the third Medieval story, Knight of Her Desire, scheduled for release December, 2016.

I wonder whether readers across the romance genre prefer different sub-genres for different times? For example, holiday reads VS mid-week or weekend reads? It would also be interesting to hear from authors who write in different sub-genres about what challenges they face.

Love to Love:

Time spent travelling with the family, without the interruption of everyday life.

Love to Laugh:

Anytime, but especially with my husband,. It occurred to me only recently there isn't a day we're together where we don't share laughter.

Love to Learn:

I'll be at the Romantic Times Convention in Las Vegas as this blog goes live. I know I'll love mingling with readers, authors and industry professionals, and learning about different facets of this exciting writing industry.



Miranda's Musings

Monday 11th May, 2015

Isn't this cool weather wonderful? The perfect chance to stock up on books as the days get shorter, my darlings. And I do hope you Mums got spoilt on Mother's Day yesterday with a little chocolate or a lovely new dressing gown and slippers, or some delicious new books! Forget the vacuum cleaners and kitchen stuff (those ads are written by men), I always hint for books, books, books!

What did I love to love this month?

Roses for Sophie by Alyssa J Montgomery. Alyssa is a personal friend of mine - yes, lucky me - and a simply wonderful writer. I've always been her biggest fan. In this book two powerful people come together: Logan, a billionaire diamond miner, and mining heiress Sophie (the premise might seem a bit gasp-worthy but it totally works, trust me...). Both need to marry, fast, for two very different reasons. Oh, the angst. Oh, the emotional trauma. Oh, the hot hot steamy hot hot romance! Whew! No sweet get together, this couple explode off the page. The roses of the title are a lovely touch: Logan brings Sophie bunches of roses (the meaning of the different coloured roses is beautifully explained) - but she's waiting for the bunch of red roses, the ones that signify true love... Will she get them?! IMHO, the wait is so worth it... What's your favourite flower? Have you ever received a loving bunch from that Someone Special in your life? Oh, I do hope so. And pssst, if you loved this gorgeous book as much as I did, also try Echoes of the Heart. Anything by Alyssa is totally worth the emotional ride!

What did I love to laugh at this month?

You may laugh at me, actually, but certainly not at this next book!... Sometimes we get a wee bit stuck in our ways, hmm? Yes, shockingly, c'est moi. I admit it. It takes a book just a tad out of my comfort zone (maybe with a ghostie and everything) to make me realise that, hey, I need to broaden my reading horizons - and in doing so, find reading treasure. Young Adult books are totally exploding at the moment, and if you think they're just for YA's, think again! This Is Your Afterlife by Vanessa Barneveld hits all the right buttons. Well written, thought-provoking, with a fabulous teen romance (and the ghost) to sweeten the deal. Give it a go, and let me know what you think? I think you'll be pleasurably surprised. Go for it.

 

What did I love to learn this month?

That I love to read romances about places I've been. My last holiday was to the Deep South in the US and I've been loading up my Kindle. These tempting goodies are on my reading list right now, and I can't wait to read them!

Louisiana Longshot by Jama Deleon

Bayou Bride by Jennifer Blake

Frankly My Dear by Sandra Hill

Don't they all sound wonderful? Have you read any? I did a lot of wandering around Gone With The Wind country, so the Sandra Hill might be first up...

Can't wait to hear from you all. And if you did get books for Mother's Day, oh, let me be jealous and tell all....

Till next month,

Miranda xx